Scalable architecture for transmission of messages over a network

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for accepting an incoming message over a packet network and transmitting it over a circuit switched network using a highly scalable architecture. The architecture utilizes a message queue and a router/filter within a private data network which is connected to an external data network such as the Internet, with separate outbound resource servers to provide the high degree of scalability, for handling a variety of message types.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to the field of message receipt/transmission and delivery using computer, phone, wireless and other communications networks. Specifically, the present invention relates to the transmission of e-mail messages which may be text only, text plus an audio file, text plus a video file, text plus a fax file or any combination thereof to a phone, pager or fax machine or other receiving device suitable for the message content, over appropriate communications networks using an architecture which enables easy expansion to handle additional message traffic as well as to connect to additional communications networks, including networks which do not presently exist which may become available in the future.

[0003] 2. Description of Related Art

[0004] Voice and data communications systems such as the public switched telephone network (PSTN) are currently used to transfer image and text data transmitted by facsimile (“fax”) machines in addition to the normally carried voice traffic. These faxed images are usually transmitted through the PSTN and received for printout or storage of the image on a destination fax machine or computer for the use by the recipient.

[0005] In U.S. application Ser. No. 08/829,857 filed Apr. 1, 1997 entitled Method and Apparatus for Transmission and Retrieval of Facsimile and Audio Messages Over a Circuit or Packet Switched Network, it is disclosed that to provide for the receipt and transmission of audio and fax information by a first user over a circuit switched network such as the public switched telephone network (PSTN) to a second user over a packet switched network such as the Internet, a communications server is connected both to the circuit switched network and a packet switched network.

[0006] The communications server contains resources to receive and process incoming audio and facsimile calls from the circuit switched network into a format suitable for transmission over the packet switched network to the second user's address. In addition, a link is first determined between the second user's address on the circuit switched network and the second user's address on the packet switched network, and then an appropriate route to the second user's address on the packet network is determined. With the system being maintained in a distributed and redundant fashion, reliable receipt and transfer of all messages is ensured. A copy of the specification and drawings of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/829,857 is attached hereto as Appendix I.

[0007] However, the architecture utilized as described in U.S. application Ser. No. 08/829,857 is not easily scalable to handle increasingly higher levels of message traffic or to easily connect to networks in addition to the PSTN and the Internet. FIG. 1 shows the essence of the architecture of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/829,857. An e-mail message is passed to an outbound resource 11 (communications server 150 in U.S. Application Ser. No. 08/829,857) which converts the e-mail message to a fax format or to audio for transmission to a fax machine or telephone connected to the PSTN. A database 13 stores customer information necessary for processing of messages (an unnumbered part of communications server 150 in U.S. application Ser. No. 08/829,857 which is also contained in database server 195 in U.S. application Ser. No. 08/829,857). After processing of an e-mail message by outbound resource 11, a fax or voice mail message is sent over the PSTN or more generally, a generalized switched telephone network (GSTN) which includes cellular telephone networks as well as the PSTN. Optionally, a pager message may also be sent informing a user of the fax which has been sent or availability of a voice mail message as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/902,400 filed Jul. 29, 1997 entitled Processing and Forwarding Messages From a Computer Network to a Forwarding Service.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] A method and apparatus for accepting an incoming message over a packet network and transmitting it over a circuit switched network using a highly scalable architecture. The architecture utilizes a message queue and a router/filter within a private data network which is connected to an external data network such as the Internet, with separate outbound resource servers to provide the high degree of scalability, for handling a variety of message types.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009]FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a prior art architecture which performs the functions, but not the scalability of the architecture of the present invention.

[0010]FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the architecture of the present invention.

[0011]FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the data/control flow through message queue 21, router/filter 23 and database 27.

[0012]FIG. 4 (4 a and 4 b) is a flow diagram of the processing performed by router/filter 23.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] The present invention provides a method and apparatus for allowing the receipt and transmission of audio, video and fax information between a circuit switched network and a packet switched network. For purposes of explanation, specific embodiments are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will be understood by one skilled in the art, that the invention may be practiced without these details. Further, although the present invention is described through the use of circuit switched and packet switched networks, most, if not all, aspects of the invention apply to all networks in general. Moreover, well-known elements, devices, process steps and the like are not set forth in detail in order to avoid obscuring the present invention.

[0014] Referring now to FIG. 2, e-mail messages for a customer are sent to/through an external data network 15 (e.g., the Internet) and routed to an appropriate SMTP/HTTP (or SHTTP) server 17 as determined by a domain name server (DNS) 18 according to well known techniques. The e-mail message may be a text message or it may include a file, the content of which may be audio, video or bitmapped (e.g., a fax) or other data. Again, the techniques for creating and sending e-mail messages with these characteristics are well known.

[0015] A processing server 19, which includes a message queue 21 and a router/filter 23 first verifies that the message is from or is to a customer using information in database 27. After successful verification, the message is broken into fragments (in the case of files with multiple attachments) and written to message queue 21. Router/filter 23 obtains messages from the message queue and handles least call routing/billing/ prioritization/filtering of messages. Filtering is primarily for notification messages for pager delivery. After billing verification and determination of a least cost route, the message is assigned to one or more outbound resources 31 for delivery to the intended recipient by a method or methods selected by the customer as previously recorded in database 27.

[0016] In the case of faxes, the outbound resource is a server which dials the destination fax number and sends the fax.

[0017] In the case of voice messages, the outbound resource is a server which dials the destination telephone number and plays the voice message.

[0018] In the case of notification messages, the outbound resource is a server which dials out to the paging terminal or delivers the notification message through any appropriate paging gateway.

[0019] After the message (in whatever form) has been delivered, a receipt with details and an error log (if any) is sent back via a secure protocol to the message queue 21.

[0020] The receipt/error log messages are then processed by the router/filter which interfaces with a billing system (not shown) for customer account update.

[0021]FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the data/control flow through message queue 21, router/filter 23 and database 27 using information contained in the following tables as explained with reference to FIGS. 4a and 4 b. TABLE 1 Message Queue Table MESSAGE_ID This is a unique number assigned to each message that arrives in the system. RESOURCE_ID Unique number assigned to each Outbound Resource RESOURCE_TYPE Each Resource is identified by the type of messages it can deliver (e.g., FAX, VOICE, NOTIFY, etc.) RESOURCE_ADDRESS Location of the Resource (such as IP address) MESSAGE_TO_EMAIL_ADDRESS To: address of the message MESSAGE_FROM_EMAIL_ADDRESS From: address of the message MESSAGE_LOCATION Location of actual message on the Message Queue 21 MESSAGE_SIZE Size of the message in bytes MESSAGE_PRIORITY Priority of the message (e.g., low, medium, high) MESSAGE_CREATION_DATE Timestamp identifying the date/time that the message was received by the system MESSAGE_EXPIRY_DURATION Amount of time after which the message becomes stale MESSAGE_SCHEDULED_DATE Scheduled delivery timestamp for the message MESSAGE_STATUS Current status of the message (Active, Pending, Sent, etc.) MESSAGE_ESTIMATED_COST Estimated cost for the delivery of the message CUSTOMER_KEY Unique number identifying the customer in the database MESSAGE_PART_OF_BROADCAST Flag identifying if the message is part of a larger broadcast list waiting to be delivered BROADCAST_ID Unique number identifying a broadcast list COVERPAGE_ID Unique number identifying a coverpage (if any) for a fax MESSAGE_SUBJECT Subject line of the message to be delivered MESSAGE_DURATION Duration of the message (delivery time of fax, or delivery time for a voice message, etc.) MESSAGE_RATE Rate for message delivery (dollars per second, etc.) MESSAGE_SEND_DATE Actual timestamp identifying when the message was delivered MESSAGE_REMOTE_CSID Identifier of the fax machine to which a FAX message was delivered MESSAGE_TYPE Type of message (e.g., FAX, VOICE, NOTIFICATION, etc.) RESOURCE_COMMUNICATION_TYPE Protocol used to communicate with the resource (HTTP, SHTTP, etc.) MESSAGE_LANGUAGE_CODE Language used for delivery of a receipt or response, based on settings in the customer table MESSAGE_PAGES Number of pages of a message (used primarily for a fax)

[0022] TABLE 2 File Type Table FILETYPE_MESSAGE_TYPE Identifier of a message type (FAX, VOICE, etc.) FILETYPE_RESOURCE_TYPE Identifier to determine a resource that can handle a particular file type FILETYPE_EXTENSION The filename extension that identifies a file type (e.g., WAV, TIF, JFX, AU, GSM, etc.)

[0023] TABLE 3 Customer Table CUSTOMER_KEY Unique number identifying a customer in the database FIRSTNAME First name of customer LASTNAME Last name of customer COMPANY Company name of customer ADDRESSLINE1 Company address ADDRESSLINE2 Company address CITY Company city MAILREGION Company state or equivalent MAILCODE Zipcode or equivalent COUNTRY Company country WORKNUMBER Customer work phone number HOMENUMBER Customer home phone number EMAILADDRESS Email address of customer COLLECTIONMETHOD Collection method such as Credit card, Debit, etc. BILLTYPE e.g., Customer, Demo, free, corporate, etc. STATUS Status of customer, Active, Inactive, etc. LANGUAGECODE Language of customer, English, German, etc. CURRENCYCODE Currency for billing the customer, US Dollars, Pound Sterling, etc.

[0024] TABLE 4 Currency Table FORMAT Currency label CURRENCY_SYMBOL Symbol for currency

[0025] TABLE 5 Notification Table CUSTOMERKEY Unique number identifying a customer in the database PAGERTYPECODE Code to determine the kind of pager service BBSNUMBER Modem number for pager notification delivery, based on the pager type PAGERNUMBER Identifier number of the pager unit PIN PIN code for the pager unit DISPLAYTYPE Display type of the pager (numeric, alphanumeric, etc.)

[0026] TABLE 6 Response email Table RESPONSE_ID Unique ID for a response/receipt message to be sent to a customer RESPONSE_SUBJECT Subject line of the response message RESPONSE_FROM_EMAIL From: line of the response message RESPONSE_BODY Actual text of the response message

[0027] TABLE 7 Resource Table RESOURCE_ID Unique identifier for the resource RESOURCE_TYPE Type of resource (FAX, VOICE, etc.) RESOURCE_STATUS Status of resource Active, Inactive, etc.. RESOURCE_QUEUE_STATUS Status of the Queue, number of messages in queue RESOURCE_TIME_ZONE Time zone for the resource RESOURCE_QUEUE_MAX Maximum size of the resource queue RESOURCE_ADDRESS Address of the resource (IP address, etc.) RESOURCE_NAME Name of the resource RESOURCE_EXPIRY_DURATION Expiry duration for any message sent to the specified resource RESOURCE_QUEUE_IN_STATUS Number of messages waiting to be delivered by the resource RESOURCE_COMMUNICATION_TYPE Method used to communicate with resource (HTTP, SHTTP, etc.)

[0028] TABLE 8 Resource Rates Table RESOURCE_ID Unique identifier for the resource RESOURCE_PREFIX Any digits to be dialed before an actual number RESOURCE_CITY_NAME Name of destination city for the message to be delivered RESOURCE_PROVIDER_RATE Rate for a particular city (dollars per second, etc.) RESOURCE_MAX_DIGITS Max number of digits allowed to be dialed RESOURCE_AREA_CODE Area code for the particular city

[0029]FIGS. 4a and 4 b are a flow diagram of the processing performed by router/filter 23 using Tables 1-8. When a message is received it is placed into message queue 21 which is simply a storage area, the specifics of which, including the mechanism for placing the message into the queue are well known. Certain details concerning the message are also stored in a message queue table (Table 1). In step 41, router/filter, which is a computer program running on processing server 19, polls the message queue table for pending requests as determined by the existence of an active message in the message status field. If no message is found, after a system defined delay, the message queue table is again polled (step 43). Once a message has been found in the table, processing continues with step 45 by determining the message type using the message_type field in Table 1 and the file type information in Table 2. The customer is then validated using information in Table 3 in step 47. In step 49, currency information for the customer is obtained from Table 4. The message is then filtered for possible pager notification using the information in Table 5 in step 51. In step 53, Table 7 is used to check for available resources to deliver the message. In step 55, the rates of available resources are checked to determine the least cost resource using Table 8. Then in step 59, the message is delivered using the determined least cost resource. After the message has been delivered, or after an error in the delivery has occurred, in step 59, a response/receipt is composed using Table 6 In step 61, the response or receipt is delivered to the sender. The system then begins the process over again at step 41.

[0030] As noted above outbound resource 31 is equivalent to communications server 150 as described in U.S. application Ser. No. 08/829,857. The modifications made to outbound resource to enable it to operate in a system having an architecture as described herein are as follows.

[0031] These changes will be described with reference to the message structure of received messages.

[0032] Message Structure

[0033] Each field has a value following an ‘=’ sign and is terminated by a newline character. The exception to this is the “Message” field where a newline immediately follows the ‘=’ sign and the actual message follows on the next line.

[0034] The fields of a message are as follows:

[0035] Password=

[0036] MessageID=

[0037] MessageStatus=

[0038] MessageSentTimeStamp=

[0039] MessageDuration=

[0040] MessageLength=

[0041] MessageRemoteCSID=

[0042] MessageSourceCSID=

[0043] MessageAttachStatus=

[0044] MessageDestination=

[0045] ResourceID=

[0046] ResourceStatus=

[0047] ResourceLastCommTimeStamp=

[0048] ResourceExpiryDuration=

[0049] ResourceQueueInStatus=

[0050] ResourceQueueOutStatus=

[0051] ResourceChannel=

[0052] ResourceChannelStatus=

[0053] MessageBoundary=

[0054] Message=

[0055] In the following explanation of the above fields, the text in brackets at the end indicates the entity providing the value for the field in the forward/reverse direction (i.e., from router/filter 23 (RF) to outbound resource 31 (RESOURCE), and from RESOURCE to RF, respectively). “NA” indicates that no value is applicable, and the text “NA” is used to populate the field. “Same” indicates that the same value is used in the reverse direction, i.e, the RESOURCE does not modify the value; it only echoes the value it receives in that field.

[0056] Password—There is a fixed password pair for each RESOURCE and RF combination. RESOURCE stores the RF password in a flat text password file in a directory (jfaxom), and RF stores the RESOURCE password in the database. (RF/RESOURCE).

[0057] MessageID—Unique ID, per message, generated by RESOURCE. (RESOURCE/Same).

[0058] MessageStatus—Code indicating current status of the message. See Status codes below. (RF/RESOURCE)

[0059] MessageSentTimeStamp—Time stamp indicating date/time the message was delivered to the final destination by RESOURCE. (NA/RESOURCE)

[0060] MessageDuration—Time (in seconds) to transmit message from RESOURCE. (NA/RESOURCE)

[0061] Messagelength—Number of pages transmitted by RESOURCE. (NA/RESOURCE)

[0062] MessageRemoteCSID—called subscriber identification (CSID) of fax machine to which message was transmitted. (NA/RESOURCE)

[0063] MessageSourceCSID—Source CSID. This may be customized per customer. (RF/Same)

[0064] MessageAttachStatus—Value of “A” indicates a message is attached for delivery. (RF/RESOURCE)

[0065] MessageDestination—Destination phone number. (RF/Same)

[0066] ResourceID—Unique ID, per resource, stored in the database. (RF/Same)

[0067] ResourceStatus—Code indicating the current status of the resource, i.e., whether it is active or not. RF uses this to determine whether further messages should be sent to RESOURCE for delivery. See Status codes below. (NA/RESOURCE)

[0068] ResourceLastCommTimeStamp—Date/time of last communication between RF and RESOURCE. (RF/RESOURCE)

[0069] ResourceExpiryDuration—Life of message (in minutes) on RESOURCE. If a message has not been delivered to the final destination by RESOURCE within this amount of time, the message is considered “expired” and is discarded.

[0070] ResourceQueueInStatus—Number of messages waiting to be processed in an Inbox directory on RESOURCE. (NA/RESOURCE)

[0071] ResourceQueueOutStatus—Number of messages waiting to be processed in an Outbox directory on RESOURCE. (NA/RESOURCE)

[0072] ResourceChannelMax—Number of channels available for use on RESOURCE. (NA/RESOURCE)

[0073] ResourceChannelStatus—Channel activity status, e.g., 000000011100001, where 0's indicate an idle channel and l's indicate a busy channel. (NA/RESOURCE)

[0074] MessageBoundary—Text for MIME boundary. (RF/NA)

[0075] Message—Actual MIME message sent by RF. If MessageAttachStatus=NA, no message follows this tag.

[0076] All fields are NA if not used. Date fields are expressed in MMDDYYhhmmss format. Resource Status Codes are:

[0077] A—Active

[0078] I—Inactive

[0079] Message Status Codes are:

[0080] P—Pending

[0081] H—On Hold

[0082] D—Deferred

[0083] R—Ready for sending to RESOURCE

[0084] X—Exchanged, i.e., sent to RESOURCE but not acknowledged by it.

[0085] A—Sent to RESOURCE and acknowledged by it.

[0086] S—Sent (i.e., receipt for final delivery received from RESOURCE)

[0087] Normal sequence for Message delivery by RESOURCE is:

[0088] RF receives a request in its queue (message queue 21).

[0089] RF sends the message to RESOURCE.

[0090] RESOURCE gets message, authenticates password, and creates a new message in the Inbox directory.

[0091] RESOURCE acknowledges receipt of message.

[0092] RESOURCE processes the message in Inbox (MessageStatus=A, MessageAttachStatus=A).

[0093] RESOURCE moves message to a Process directory for further processing.

[0094] RESOURCE finishes processing message and delivers it to final destination.

[0095] RESOURCE removes the message from the Process directory.

[0096] RESOURCE creates a message in Outbox directory. (MessageStatus=S).

[0097] If a “reply message” is to be delivered to the original sender, MessageAttachStatus=A, else MessageAttachStatus=NA. MessageID remains the same in either case.

[0098] RESOURCE delivers receipt (with “reply message,” if applicable) to RF.

[0099] RF receives the message and puts it in the Queue for database processing.

[0100] Processing server 19 with the above described functionality may be implemented using readily available systems such as a Windows NT server or a UNIX server. Database 27 may be implemented as a database server using readily available systems such as a Windows NT server or a UNIX server running, for example a SQL database.

[0101] While the present invention has been particularly described with reference to the various figures, it should be understood that the figures are for illustration only and should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention. Many changes and modifications may be made to the invention, by one having ordinary skill in the art, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 

We claim:
 1. A system for scalable architecture for the transfer of messages in one of a plurality of formats to a user in at least a second one of said plurality of formats comprising: a) an internal data network for coupling to an external data network; b) at least one first server coupled to the internal data network, said first server including a message queue and a router/filter; c) at least one second server coupled to the internal data network and adapted to communicate with a third network type; d) at least one database server coupled to the internal data network. 